The Harem

Many consider the imperial harem to have a great and easy life, but I would like to ask the question of whether the imperial harem was a glorified slave?  These women had no choice but to live in the palace of the Sultan and be prepared to serve him whenever he chose.  Many of these women were forced into this "slavery" to ensure that they would have sex and produce children, which in turn would ensure that the blood line from the Sultan would live on.  Once again, these women had no choice but to give into these conditions and demands and bear the children of the sultan.  Is this an easy life or is it slavery?  Yes these women lived in beautiful palaces and had many amenities available to them, but they were forced into this practice against their free will.  So, I would argue that the harem is then considered a slave.  When the harem would give birth, many, if not all, of their children would be handpicked and forced into the army.  This doesn't seem like such a great life to me, which is why I argue that this is basically slavery.